Excise & Taxation staff on pen-down strike
Mohali, December 17
Cadre of the Excise and Taxation Department from the Additional Commissioner to the ministerial staff held protests at the head office, district excise and taxation offices, mobile wing offices and distilleries over the issues of lower pay scales and harassment of officers by the Vigilance Bureau.
An emergency meeting of the Executive Members of Confederation was called today and it was unanimously resolved that until the government issued any notification regarding the revision of the pay scales, the call for the pen down strike stands extended till December 19, followed by mass casual leave from December 20 till their demands are met. The Sixth Pay Commissions’ recommendations have downgraded the excise and taxation inspectors to Level 10 by ignoring the demand of placement in Level-14 in the pay matrix. Similarly, the officers have been relegated to Level 13 by ignoring their demand of placement in Level 18 in the pay matrix, they said. — TNS